We tested the hypothesis that glaucoma disrupts electrophysiological conduction properties and axon function in optic nerve as a function of intraocular pressure (IOP) levels and age in the DBA/2J mouse model of glaucoma. The amplitude and the integral of electrical signals evoked along the axons decreased considerably by 6 months of age as a function of increasing IOP levels. At young ages, raised IOP was directly associated with increased vulnerability to metabolic challenge. Changes in the physiological function of the optic nerves were accentuated with aging, leading to loss of compound action potential in an entire population of fibers: small, slow conducting axons. This loss was accompanied with loss of small fiber axon counts and declining metabolic reserve by demonstrating IOP-dependent ATP decrease in mouse optic nerves. These data shed light on a novel potential mechanism of glaucoma pathology whereby increased IOP and declining metabolic capacity lead to axon liability and eventually dysfunction and loss.

The importance of white matter (WM) injury to stroke pathology has been underestimated in experimental animal models and this may have contributed to the failure to translate potential therapeutics into the stroke clinic. Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors are neuroprotective and also promote neurogenesis. These properties make them ideal candidates for stroke therapy. In a pure WM tract (isolated mouse optic nerve), we show that pan-and class I-specific HDAC inhibitors, administered before or after a period of oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD), promote functional recovery of axons and preserve WM cellular architecture. This protection correlates with the upregulation of an astrocyte glutamate transporter, delayed and reduced glutamate accumulation during OGD, preservation of axonal mitochondria and oligodendrocytes, and maintenance of ATP levels. Interestingly, the expression of HDACs 1, 2, and 3 is localized to astrocytes, suggesting that changes in glial cell gene transcription and/or protein acetylation may confer protection to axons. Our findings suggest that a therapeutic opportunity exists for the use of HDAC inhibitors, targeting mitochondrial energy regulation and excitotoxicity in ischemic WM injury.

Oxidative stress is an important molecular mechanism of astrocyte injury and death following ischemia reperfusion and may be an effective target of intervention. One therapeutic strategy for detoxifying the many different reactive oxygen and nitrogen species that are produced under these conditions is induction of the Phase II gene response by the use of chemicals or conditions that promote the translocation of the transcriptional activating factor NRF2 from the cytosol to the nucleus, where it binds to genomic antioxidant response elements. This study tested the hypothesis that pre-or post-treatment of cultured cortical astrocytes with sulforaphane, an alkylating agent known to activate the NRF2 pathway of gene expression protects against death of astrocytes caused by transient exposure to O 2 and glucose deprivation (OGD). Rat cortical astrocytes were exposed to 5 μM sulforaphane either 48 hr prior to, or for 48 hr after a 4 hr period of OGD. Both pre-and post-treatments significantly reduced cell death at 48 hr after OGD. Immunostaining for 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine, a marker of DNA/RNA oxidation, was reduced at 4 hr reoxygenation with sulforaphane pretreatment. Sulforaphane exposure was followed by an increase in cellular and nuclear NRF2 immunoreactivity. Moreover, sulforaphane also increased the mRNA, protein level, and enzyme activity of NADPH/Quinone Oxidoreductase 1, a known target of NRF2 transcriptional activation. We conclude that sulforaphane stimulates the NRF2 pathway of antioxidant gene expression in astrocytes and protects them from cell death in an in vitro model of ischemia/reperfusion.

Previous studies indicate that conditional genetic deletion of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) in neonatal mice enhances the ability of axons to regenerate following spinal cord injury (SCI) in adults. Here, we assessed whether deleting PTEN in adult neurons post-SCI is also effective, and whether enhanced regenerative growth is accompanied by enhanced recovery of voluntary motor function. PTENloxP/loxP mice received moderate contusion injuries at cervical level 5 (C5). One group received unilateral injections of adeno-associated virus expressing CRE (AAV-CRE) into the sensorimotor cortex; controls received a vector expressing green fluorescent protein (AAV-GFP) or injuries only (no vector injections). Forelimb function was tested for 14 weeks post-SCI using a grip strength meter (GSM) and a hanging task. The corticospinal tract (CST) was traced by injecting mini-ruby BDA into the sensorimotor cortex. Forelimb gripping ability was severely impaired immediately post-SCI but recovered slowly over time. The extent of recovery was significantly greater in PTEN-deleted mice in comparison to either the AAV-GFP group or the injury only group. BDA tract tracing revealed significantly higher numbers of BDA-labeled axons in caudal segments in the PTEN-deleted group compared to control groups. In addition, in the PTEN-deleted group, there were exuberant collaterals extending from the main tract rostral to the lesion, into and around the scar tissue at the injury site. These results indicate that PTEN deletion in adult mice shortly post-SCI can enhance regenerative growth of CST axons and forelimb motor function recovery.

Oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction have been closely associated in many subcellular, cellular, animal, and human studies of both acute brain injury and neurodegenerative diseases. Our animal models of brain injury caused by cardiac arrest illustrate this relationship and demonstrate that both oxidative molecular modifications and mitochondrial metabolic impairment are exacerbated by reoxygenation of the brain using 100% ventilatory O 2 compared to lower levels that maintain normoxemia. Numerous molecular mechanisms may be responsible for mitochondrial dysfunction caused by oxidative stress, including oxidation and inactivation of mitochondrial proteins, promotion of the mitochondrial membrane permeability transition, and consumption of metabolic cofactors and intermediates, e.g., NAD(H). Moreover, the relative contribution of these mechanisms to cell injury and death is likely different among different types of brain cells, e.g., neurons and astrocytes. In order to better understand these oxidative stress mechanisms and their relevance to neurologic disorders, we have undertaken studies with primary cultures of astrocytes and neurons exposed to O 2 and glucose deprivation and reoxygenation and compared the results of these studies to those using a rat model of neonatal asphyxic brain injury. These results support the hypothesis that release and or consumption of mitochondrial NAD(H) is at least partially responsible for respiratory inhibition, particularly in neurons. Keywords pyruvate dehydrogenase; respiration; nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Ischemic Brain InjuryA large body of evidence indicates that mitochondrial dysfunction plays a critical role in the pathophysiology of ischemic brain injury 1 -6. Consequences of mitochondrial dysfunction are numerous and include oxidative stress, loss of cellular Ca 2+ homeostasis, promotion of apoptosis, and metabolic failure. There are many possible causes of mitochondrial metabolic impairment and most involve oxidative modifications to proteins, lipids, or DNA. Identification of the sites at which oxidative stress impairs respiration can guide the development of counteractive interventions with neuroprotective potential. Complex I of the electron transport chain (ETC), which catalyzes the oxidation of NADH and the reduction of ubiquinone, is particularly sensitive to inhibition by both oxidative stress and ischemia/reperfusion and is generally considered to be the rate-limiting component of the ETC 7 -10. Another cause of impaired ETC activity is the release of cytochrome c through the outer mitochondrial membrane into the cytosol, an event that is also often followed by caspase-dependent apoptosis 11. Oxidative stress promotes cytochrome c release by several mechanisms, including those promoting translocation of Bax and Bak to the outer membrane where they form pores that allow for passive efflux of cytochrome c and other intermembrane proteins 12 , 13. Oxidation of the mitochondria-specific phospholipid, cardiolipin...